Set against the backdrop of futuristic fashion and sets, with one or two Rock Horror Picture Show references thrown in, what appears to be just Spears’ proclaim of her dancing abilities seems to be a video hidden with commentary on the Rise and Fall of Britney Spears by none other than Britney herself.
From the opening it even starts. A meteor falls to Earth set to audio of people watching it descend in chaos - sounds like Britney’s life the last 3 years, no? - and cuts right into a sexy, fresh faced Britney being young, flirty and dolled up for her male backup dancers.
Nearly a minute in, Britney is seen in some kind of circular room surrounded by screens that display her past videos - her past glory. She herself is in a white dress symbolic of her virginal beginnings and the initial image she had been marketed to become. She begins to rise and ascend into success, surrounded by the videos of the former half of her career that critics hold up as at her peak.
Mysterious thrashing occurs from underneath the dress. This could be interpreted many ways - from her wanting to embrace her sexuality to her inner demons starting to appear. A new set up is shown. A wicked looking Britney amongst the press, literally going crazy. This can be seen as Spears commenting on her failure to communicate the message and image she wanted the media see; ie - from head thrashing, body parts growing and growling to the camera. A nice Rocky Horror Picture Show reference comes in with a scene of just Spears’ lips.
Britney begins to slowly descend down in her white dress and emerge faceless dancers. They dance around her and appear to have no eyes - symbolism for her blind anger maybe? As she hits the bottom, her face is morphed. Her frown is literally photoshopped into a smile and she’s on the verge of cracking.
Soon, Spears begins to destroy everything that her career has been up to that point. Her body thrashes around as paint shoots from her fingers - it splatters on her dress and all her videos, representing that though the media has been the topic of many of her songs, Spears herself, unable to deal with her demons and success, tries to take down what pushed her into that dark time in the first place.
As the paint continues to trash her past success, Britney fights another version of herself representing her problems or possibly her past. What was once the light dancing scene is now Spears and crew dancing in the dark, only with the outline of their bodies illuminated by light. She struggles and thrashes even harsher in the other scenario, clearly losing control and unable to handle her problems.
All the Britney’s now seem weak. The Britney’s fighting lay on the floor and the Britney in the now tarnished white gown lays amongst all the paint in the fetal position. This is the breakdown of Britney Spears.
Don’t hold it against her though, as the fighting Britney rises, refusing to give up and the Britney in the gown throws her head up towards the light. She in turn is overcoming yet embracing her past. What emerges is a Britney similar to the one from the very beginning. Her clothes are now black - showing that everyone has a past and everyone has scars and battle wounds, but they do not define a person as she goes even harder in dancing and doing what she loves.
And that is the genius of Britney Spears.
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